One of the worst-affected families from last year's flood disaster in northern Tasmania has been dealt another blow, with vandals breaking into their waterlogged home and spray-painting walls, smashing glass and bashing holes in plaster.
Clinton Hobby and his family have been waiting for four months to get back into their home in Deloraine after almost 60 centimetres of water tore through last October.
The Meander River, opposite the home, reached a record height of 9.45 metres at Strathbridge, downstream of the town.
The wait for the Hobby family's insurer to fix the damage has already been long and agonising.
A phone call from their neighbour on Tuesday only added to the heartbreak.
"He told me my house has been broken into and trashed on the inside," Mr Hobby said.
"I was shocked again. Like what else do we have to go through?
"Getting flooded was bad enough but then walking into this, how much more does a person have to take before they break?"
When Mr Hobby got home, he discovered his front and back doors had been smashed, and so too had a window.
The walls and some windows were covered in black graffiti, including expletives, and another wall had been hit repeatedly with an axe handle.
Chalk had been crushed into the floor with an outdoor paver.
"The stupid amount of damage that's been done is just ridiculous," he said.
Hopes the culprits 'face the consequences'
Mr Hobby said his neighbour chased out of the property a small group of young people who he suspected of spending the night there.
Police attended the scene once the group had left, about an hour after they were called.
Under the Youth Justice Act, police must witness the crime being committed to lay charges.
"Knowing they won't face consequences really arcs me up," Mr Hobby said.
"I don't care how old you are, if you know you're going to break into a house and destroy somebody's property, you can face the consequences."
Meander Valley Mayor Wayne Johnston said it was "really disappointing".
"To think that there are young people out there that are coming onto private property and trashing what's left of it … I was shocked to hear it," he said.
Mr Johnston said the police response time was unacceptable.
"I am booked in to have a meeting with the new incoming inspector when he's on deck, but to think the police station is within viewing of the property … it's pretty poor."
Tasmania Police said in a statement the incident was prioritised as a "non-urgent" response because there were no offenders at the scene when the call was made.
A spokesperson said a number of youths were spoken to after being located nearby and investigations were continuing.
"Regarding proximity to the station, it's important to note officers could be working anywhere within the police division at any given time," they said.
Lengthy wait made longer
Mr Hobby said he called his insurer four times a week to try to get his home repaired.
Now that delay looks set to be even longer as assessors will have to re-examine the property.
"It's like one step forward, three steps back. They keep throwing roadblocks at us," he said.
"It's like, come on mate, give us a break."
